12 minutes agoPetritsch says Kosovo and Serbia should disarm blindly: EU do more for dialogue
Periskopi(4 years ago)
(4 years ago)Diplomatic Diary Wolfgang Petritsch has said officials in Kosovo and Serbia have to disarm blindly so that the situation created in northern Kosovo can be expanded. In an interview for REL, Petritsch, former European Union envoy for Kosovo and former High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, has said the Kosovo government has [...]
In an interview for REL, Petritsch, the former European Union's envoy for Kosovo and former High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, has said the Kosovo government has made a wise decision to postpone implementation of decisions for Serbian license plates and documents.
It is a wise decision that contributes to lowering tensions. I think this is the most important thing, because in this case, efforts to implement decisions will not help stabilize the situation, otherwise, the situation can quickly turn into serious conflict”.
“The troops of the NATO mission in Kosovo, KFOR, are prepared. And that shows how important the international military presence in Kosovo is. However, continued dialogue is needed. This is important. The only way I see as diplomats is for the parties to talk and engage with (the special envoy for Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, Miroslav) Lajcak and find solutions to this dangerous situation”.
According to him, the EU should do more for the dialogue mediating between Kosovo and Serbia, and this example shows how procrastinating the process does not work.
“potential will be, unfortunately. Not enough time has been done in the dialogue process. And here's the score. Not many things have happened in the past months, in fact nothing has happened. These kinds of conflicts between Kosovo and Serbia must stop. The European Union is responsible for this. (Miroslav) Lajcak believes he is busy at night and day for resolving the situation, but he must also achieve progress in terms of implementation and resolution of conflict”.
The European Union has been accepted by both sides as mediators. Therefore, the European bloc is in a leading role, seems to be active and present in Belgrade and Pristina, in order to see results. The EU needs to boost commitment. This is one of the most dangerous examples of how crawling doesn't work. Dialogue should not stop. If it stops, we slide into conflict. Moving forward is the strategy that can result in success”, Petritsch has said.
